WASHINGTON - June 20 - Local and national groups across the country this week will take the following message to the streets in front of Starbucks locations in 23 cities: Stop serving hormone-laden milk to your customers. Their efforts are part of a national campaign, coordinated by the consumer group Food & Water Watch, which since March has been urging the Seattle-based coffee leader to stop buying milk made with artificial growth hormones.
Citing evidence of harm to dairy cows and questions about human health impacts, 30 groups will hand out flyers in cities ranging from Portland, Oregon, to Brooklyn, N.Y., to Greeley, Colo., that urge Starbucks to stop buying milk made with an artificial hormone, commonly called rBGH which stands for recombinant bovine growth hormone. The flyers ask customers to urge Starbucks to “buy better milk” for their coffee drinks.
RBGH is banned from use in many countries including all 25 in the European Union, Canada and Japan. When cows are injected with rBGH to increase milk production, the artificial hormone boosts another hormone called IGF-1 in the cow and subsequently in the cow’s milk. Too much IFG-1 in humans has been linked to increased rates of colon, breast, and prostate cancer.
“Starbucks promotes itself as a socially responsible corporation. It should start ‘walking the talk’ and stop using artificial hormones that have unknown long-term health effects,” said Wenonah Hauter, executive director of Food & Water Watch.
Numerous companies are requiring their milk suppliers to be rBGH-free, including Ben & Jerry’s ice cream and Tillamook County Creamery Association cheese. Additionally, certified organic milk cannot be produced with rBGH.
Click here to learn more about the Starbucks campaign
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